I"ve heard that suicide bombers are loaded up on heroin, don’t know if that is true or not but I guess it would make it easier to kill oneself.
I know some soldiers use anabolic steroids. And I know amphetamines were a big drug used in WW2 by both sides.
Hash was used by some groups in the past. What if anything did the vikings use? I’ve read mushrooms, but didn’t know that those could cause rage.
For the purposes of the thread, I’m talking about drugs used to enhance ones abilities in battle, not drugs to deal with the trauma of war (becoming an alcoholic or heroin addict after the war, etc).
I’d assume they would use drugs that would do things like enhance the senses (sight, smell), deaden pain, slow the perception of time/improve reaction time, improve strength, improve speed, reduce fear, reduce the need for sleep, increase aggression, etc.
Have wide ranges of drugs been used for that, or has it mostly just been a handful? Considering that historically I guess before the 20th century all you really had was marijuana, alcohol and mushrooms there wasn’t much to select from.
From what I’ve read (and Googling brings up both cites and refutations):
The Wehrmacht gave its soldiers speed and steroids
The Colt M1911 pistol was developed to stop drugged-up Moros in the Phillippine-American war
Sigmund Freud became addicted to cocaine while experimenting on its feasibility for the Austro-Hungarian army.
Starting with the U.S. Civil War, armies became dependent on coffee and tobacco. Before then, soldiers endeavored to be as drunk as possible when going into battle.
Years ago I read an article about primitive tribes where the shaman would prepare the men for battle by having them drink a concoction made from local plants. It contained things that would simultaneously stimulate them, numb them to physical and emotional pain, fill them with rage, and cause them to hallucinate. This was enhanced by ritual so that they ended up being fearless and reckless to the point of suicidal, in facing an enemy that they saw as demons attacking them and their families.
I wish I could remember where I read it. I know that it used the term “war drugs” but a Google search on that returns nothing but articles on the war on drugs.
The fly agaric (Amanita muscaria) was used by the Khanty of Western Siberia before embarking on revenge expeditions. Ingesting the mushroom would give immense courage and stamina. (Peaceful) early eyewitness accounts tell of fly agaric-high men plowing through deep snow for hours on end just for the hell of it, before crashing and sleeping it off for a day or so. Fly agaric was widely used by indigenous peoples over the Boreal zone, no doubt from ancient times, but the Khanty account is the only one related to warfare that I’ve seen.
specifically, that was Murad IV, who didn’t like coffee, but really, really didn’t like tobacco. He’d stalk the streets and army camps, personally bashing smokers to death.
Ironically, Murad was a brand of Turkish tobacco cigarettes that never gained a foothold in the American or British market, unable to compete with stronger and more carcinogenic Virginia tobacco.
There is a brand of caffeinated black chocolate in Germany called Scho-Ka-Kola. It was first introduced in 1936 and it comes in a round metal canister. During WWII, it was issued to German pilots and it therefore was (and still is) also known as Fliegerschokolade (aviator chocolate). Scho-Ka-Kola is still available in the shops (and online).
Let’s not forget medicinal drugs. Starting with WWII, all American soldiers (and probably several other nations’) were issued a package of sulfa antibiotics for use on injured comrades. The practice continues today, though with more effective antibiotics.
One might debate whether this counts as “in battle”, but remember that before WWII, infection claimed many more lives in warfare than direct enemy action.
On the modern front, what is our DOD currently working on? No cite handy, but I know they were looking into Modafinil at one point, and probably still are. They’ve also cut Neuralstem, Inc. some fat checks to help facilitate development of NSI-189. The latter compound might not meet the OP’s criteria, as it is probably being looked at as a possible treatment for PTSD.
Amphetamines were fairly routinely distributed to combat troops on just about all sides of WWII.
During World War II, amphetamines were widely used to keep the fighting men going (during the Viet Nam war, American soldiers used more amphetamines than the rest of the world did during WWII). In Japan, intravenous methamphetamine abuse reached epidemic proportions immediately after World War II, when supplies stored for military use became available to the public.
During World War II, amphetamine and methamphetamine were used extensively by both the Allied and Axis forces for their stimulant and performance-enhancing effects
Even though Adolf Hitler’s Nazi party rules stressed the importance of keeping fit by abstaining from drink and tobacco to keep the Aryan race strong and pure, his soldiers were taking chemicals to fight longer, harder and more recklessly. The German army distributed many millions of pills made from methamphetamine and a primarily cocaine-based stimulant to its front-line fighters, who were ordered to take them during battles.
Drug use in the German military during World War II was highly encouraged and widespread.
I believe it’s SOP, albeit hardly official, for US soldiers to pack along a bottle of extra-strength tylenol, just to take care of those aches and pains that can happen when you’re extending yourself while wearing a backpack that weighs 1/3 to 1/2 of your body weight.
In Nam, the rumors were that the LRRPs carried pocket fulls of ups and downs to hit their most productive energy level. One never knew for sure though, as they hardly ever associated with muggles (and in this case, that classification would include Green Beanies).
I’ve never heard this before. Doesn’t really seem plausible, as I can’t imagine anyone being able to function hepped up heroin, let alone a soldier or pilot*!*
Either way, couldn’t you just do a speedball or combine heroin with amphetamines to give you the energy to go through with an attack if fatigue was an issue?
